Alberta fast-tracks Highway 63 projects, including passing lanes

Karen Kleiss, edmontonjournal.com07.17.2012

Trucker driver Kevin Meurin heading south on Highway 63 just north of Grassland, May 15, 2012. He drives this route four times a week and has seen all kinds of bad drivers on the road.Ed Kaiser
/ edmontonjournal.com

The province is fast-tracking three projects on Highway 63, including the construction of two new passing lanes.Rick Colville
/ edmontonjournal.com

The black truck is passing another rig on Highway 63 just west of Grassland, May 16, 2012.Ed Kaiser
/ edmontonjournal.com

Traffic crosses the bridge over House River on Highway 63 north of Wandering River on May 16, 2012. This is the steepest drop on the whole highway and the most challenging to build.Ed Kaiser
/ edmontonjournal.com

This is a memorial for three local victims killed along highway 63 just outside the town of Grassland, Alta.Ed Kaiser
/ edmontonjournal.com

EDMONTON - The province is fast-tracking three projects on Highway 63, including the construction of two new passing lanes.

Transportation Minister Ric McIver announced Tuesday that three tenders have gone out ahead of schedule in an effort to speed the twinning of the road to Fort McMurray.

“Our government promised quick action on Highway 63 and we’re delivering on this promise,” McIver said in a statement. “These new projects demonstrate our commitment to safe highways and will increase passing lane opportunities on Highway 63.”

There have been at least 149 fatalities on the highway since 1990.

The province plans to build two new passing lanes between House River and the junction with Highway 881, bringing the total number to six.

The government will also start grading for 27 kilometres of twinning near Wandering River, and will start clearing trees from House River to Mariana Lake.

All three projects are expected to begin this summer and finish by the end of 2013, weather permitting. The estimated cost of the projects won’t be released while the tenders are out.

Transportation spokesman Trent Bancarz said funding will come from the province’s $1.38-billion construction budget for highways. Specifically, the province has budgeted $442 million to pay for construction of “key strategic economic and trade corridors,” including Highway 63.

The highway to Fort MC-Murray has been under scrutiny for years as traffic to the heart of the oilsands industry increases. An April 27 crash that killed seven people when two pickup trucks collided 50 kilometres north of Wandering River sparked a wave of community protest and prompted a pledge from Premier Alison Redford to do more to improve the highway’s safety.

Wood Buffalo Mayor Melissa Blake said she is glad to see the projects going to tender, though she would still like to see work accelerated.

“It is not a bad thing,” Blake said in Fort McMurray. “Sensibility tells you more passing lanes will make it safer. Seeing efforts taking place is better than seeing none.”

Blake said her constituents are always looking for signs of progress. They remain angry and frustrated following the head-on collision April 27 that killed seven people.

“It was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” Blake said. “I think because of the victims’ roots in the local church community there was a ripple effect. And it also became a rallying point for anyone who has lost somebody on the road.”

Blake has a sign that reads “Twin Highway 63” displayed just inside her office door.

“I have been losing people on the highway ever since I was elected to public office here,” she said.

Ken Chapman, executive director of the Oilsands Developers Group, said “it’s a very positive move” by the provincial government.

“This is a strong indication of a shift in the consciousness of the Alberta government, that twinning Highway 63 has to be done with alacrity,” Chapman said.

“This is not a large project, but it’s a significant step and it shows they are taking the Allen Report seriously.

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